This invention relates to a hydraulic drive system comprising control valves for determining the direction of flow to and from the pressure fluid consuming load objects, and which also adapt the size of the fluid flow to the objects by shunting off a surplus or no load flow to the hydraulic tank through a shunt passage. In case of a load which generates pressure fluid this shunting is obtained by a restriction control.
The control valve type mentioned above is intended to be supplied with fluid from a pump having a constant displacement and working at a given speed level. There are two modes of operation, namely one mode in which no fluid flow is used for effective work, and another mode in which a certain working flow is used. It is desirable to be able to control large hydraulic fluid flows (effects) by a given size of valve with moderate losses only.
The mode of operation in which no work flow is delivered to the connected load objects means that the entire pump flow passes unrestricted through the shunt passage of the valves or through the so called free flow passage back to the tank.
A conventional arrangement of valves comprises one or more valve sections located in parallel such that the free through passage or the shunt conduit is formed by the shunt passages of the valve sections connected in series. The restriction of the flow in the shunt conduit is obtained by cam portions on the valve slides. As the valve slides are put in their neutral positions, the area of the shunt conduit is the largest possible, but in spite of that the direction changes of the flow create considerable pressure drops which become greater the larger pump flow is forced therethrough.
As one or more of the valve slides are displaced, a restriction of the surplus or no-load flow through the shunt conduit is obtained. A flow which corresponds to the decreasing shunt flow is forced into a parallel passage, the so called feed passage, which is connected to the respective load object.
As long as none of the valve slides are displaced, the product of the pump flow and the restriction in the shunt conduit represent the no-load losses in the control valves, losses which increase in relation to the increase of the pump size. If the no-load interval is a major part of the work cycle, one realizes that it is disadvantages to supply the valves from too big a pump or, the other way around, to choose too small valves.